The episode begins in Oxford, England. A boy rides his bike along the street before parking and walking. In the alleyway, he hears something behind him and turns around. The guy is soon assaulted and killed by a vampire. The police arrive at the scene and one of the detectives notifies Domenico (Gregg Chillin) about the murder. After the intro, Marcus Whitmore (Edward Bluemel) travels to Cooper Sinclair and hears Phoebe Taylor (Adelle Leonce) talking about the murder. Marcus asks about one of their lots so Phoebe agrees to take him through. They go to Phoebe’s office and Marcus tells her he is interested in lot 42. He goes on to say he would like to buy lot 42, but Phoebe explains their auction lots aren’t available for advance purchase.

Marcus knows that the auction estimate is 80,000 so he offers 200 grand because his grandma has set her heart on the items. Phoebe doesn’t relent and tells him he’ll need to bid for it this afternoon. She admits she would let him have it but it isn’t up to her. She lets him see it in person and we see that it is the paintings of Matthew and Diana. Seconds later, Sarah (Alex Kingston) and Emily (Valarie Pettiford) eat and talk about Martha’s meatloaf being fantastic. They’re told that they need to see this. As Grand Master of the Knights of Lazarus, Marcus had Nathaniel monitor the internet for evidence of Matthew and Diana being in the past. He found the paintings at an auction house in Oxford. Marcus intends to purchase the paintings this afternoon. During the event, Marcus keeps a close eye on Phoebe.

Marcus wins the paintings at a cheaper price and tries to convince Phoebe to let him collect them earlier than tomorrow. He offers to pay in cash but Phoebe tells him that they don’t accept cash. The items will need to return to the vaults until the payment clears. He was going to head to France, but he’ll need to find something to do with his free evening. Next, Gerbert (Trevor Eve) learns that one of the Madison Coven finally cracked and confirmed that there were demons and vampires at the Bishop house. Peter Knox says Matthew formed his own cabal before he disappeared in time. Peter isn’t sure what he is up to but he knows it involves the Book of Life. Plus, he says they need to pool their resources if they’re going to stop them. They go inside and discuss the information Gerbert knows about The Book of Life.

Meanwhile, Marcus hangs out with Nathaniel (Daniel Ezra) and Agatha Wilson (Tanya Moodie). They talk about Sophie’s baby being a witch and how to deal with that. Agatha is worried that they’ll take the baby from them. She worries that Knox and the conservatives will do something even worse. Miriam (Aiysha Hart) calls for Marcus while talking to Sophie (Aisling Loftus) about the experiments. She believes Sophie’s DNA might help them find out how creature genetics are changing. Marcus sits down and looks at the readings at Miriam’s request. Marcus believes it is fetal arrhythmia or a slight abnormality with the baby’s heart rate. It is normally a temporary thing and will work itself out but they can’t have an at-home birth. Marcus promises to find her the best in the business.

Domenico visits the morgue and checks the new victim’s body before calling Gerbert and telling him about it. He says blood-rage is back so Gerbert encourages him to track the scent and find the killer. Domenico tries to follow the footsteps of the person responsible. He finds that the auction house has been ransacked. In the morning, Phoebe learns that the power was disabled so the security alarm wasn’t triggered. Joe Evans was on duty, but they can’t get in touch with him now. She meets with Marcus to tell him about the robbery. It seems only lot 42 was stolen and there is no suspect. Emily and Sarah discuss the matter and want to leave but Ysabeau (Lindsay Duncan) reminds them she promised to protect them. She learns that Gerbert wants to meet and Emily wonders if that means he got the miniatures.

She warns them that they need to stay inside. They go back inside and complain while trying to figure out how the book is connected to Diana. Emily suggests summoning the dead but Sarah doesn’t want to do that. Sarah learns that Emily has been experimenting behind her back and pleads with her not to do it again. Marcus returns to Phoebe and invites her to dinner with him. Domenico watches and thinks about the ongoing situation. Marcus and Phoebe spend the night together. They discuss the origins of the portraits. Phoebe tells Marcus what she does and that her friends think she is weird, but he tells her he likes weird. Domenico enters the restaurant and Marcus notices him so he makes an excuse to leave the table for a second.

Domenico confronts Marcus outside and wants to know why he was at the auction house. Marcus wants to ask the same question before Domenico sniffs him. Domenico tells Marcus about the vampire who is murdering warm bloods in the city. He goes on to say he found the dead guard in the vault and cleaned it up before the police found out. He argues that the one responsible is infected with blood rage. Marcus says his grandfather eliminated blood rage years ago but Domenico isn’t sure about that. He warns Marcus that Phoebe shouldn’t start asking questions about the missing guard. Domenico calls someone and asks if anything was stolen from the auction house. Marcus returns to Phoebe and she tells him that the police think it was an inside job. That is why they’re searching for the security guard Joe, but Phoebe doesn’t believe he would do it.

Phoebe wants to know more about the paintings before Marcus says they should let the police do their job. As they leave, they talk about music. She believes Marcus doesn’t like talking about himself and he says his life is complicated. They kiss before a taxi arrives for Phoebe and she leaves. Marcus returns to Nathaniel and learns they’ve agreed to have the baby in the hospital he picked. However, he is concerned about the world they’re bringing the baby inside. And, if she is a witch, she’ll be everything the congregation stands against. Marcus says the Knights of Lazarus will protect her, but Nathaniel is worried with everything bad going on in the world. He says the Knights need a rebranding and Marcus has his work cut out for him.

He gets a call from Phoebe and they meet up again. She tells Marcus she researched him online and found nothing. She asks about his job and house but believes he is hiding something like he was when they talked about the robbery. They joke about Marcus being a superhero before going upstairs and taking their relationship to the next base. Meanwhile, Ysabeau meets with Gerbert and he asks about the rumor that she is harboring Diana’s aunts at her place. She claims it is a lie and says she never met them. Gerbert tells her how Philippe always put the vampire species above everything else but Matthew is now in direct conflict with that. He wants to know what Matthew and Diana are planning. Ysabeau believes an email would’ve done the trick before she learns about the vampire killing humans.

There have always been rumors about her bloodlines. Gerbert wants her to side with him and he agrees to steer any investigation away from her family. She claims they have nothing to do with this. That night, Emily conducts another spell experiment. During the spell, she sees the face of Rebecca who calls Emily by her name. She disappears quickly. Emily tries to get into bed without waking Sarah. Phoebe gets up and finds B positive blood in Marcus’s fridge. Then, she looks around his house and finds old pictures. Sophie comes downstairs and asks Phoebe who she is. Marcus interrupts and Phoebe believes he is a con artist or at least hiding something from him. She asks him about the photos and the blood in his fridge. She goes on to say that nothing in his life makes sense.

Before she can leave, he asks her to take a walk. They do and he tries to explain things. He tells her about being a vampire and living hundreds of years. He says everything she knows about them is human propaganda based on half-truths. She says she feels sorry for him and he needs help. Then, she tells him goodbye. Moments later, Baldwin Montclair (Trystan Gravelle) arrives and claims about Marcus not answering his phone. Marcus is shown a newspaper article about Drac The Ripper but he only knows about Domenico sniffing around. Baldwin explains Ysabeau wants him to speak to Miriam about the murders and she wants to see Marcus.

Baldwin wonders if being made Grand Master is Marcus’s worst nightmare since it comes with so much responsibility and pressure. He offers to take it off of his hands because the Knights may be needed and they’ll need an experienced leader. Marcus says Matthew didn’t give him a choice, but Baldwin says he is Philippe’s only surviving blood son and should be Grand Master. Baldwin believes Marcus only cares about humans. He pleads with Marcus to step out from Matthew’s shadow because Matthew doesn’t deserve his loyalty. Domenico sends a text message about the robbery at Cooper Sinclair. He gets a copy of the police report and looks at the portraits of Matthew and Diana.

He talks to Gerbert on the phone about the latest murder becoming a hashtag. Gerbert tells him he better not be holding out on him. Marcus meets with Ysabeau who asks why he exposed himself to a human and claims he’ll need to kill her now. Marcus doesn’t believe so since Phoebe thinks he is psycho. Then, she warns him he can’t be reckless and needs to understand his new responsibilities. Marcus admits he wants to shake things up, make a real difference, and look forward. They talk about Baldwin wanting the Knights before Ysabeau admits she had to send him to Oxford because events are in motion that are threatening their family. She says Philippe built the Knights to protect her because the disease is in her bloodline.

She is asymptomatic, but others weren’t so fortunate. Matthew is fully afflicted and he sired Marcus so they’re carriers. Marcus can’t believe that everyone knew and kept it from him. Gerbert will make sure the congregation comes for them if their secret is discovered. They will kill every one of them.

 

A Discovery Of Witches Review

I am a bit baffled as to why but these episodes feel so long-wined when they’re barely over 40 minutes. Nevertheless, the 4th episode was likely one of the best episodes this season. I am starting to believe the time jump to the past was a big mistake since the events in the present are still compelling and entertaining.

These events don’t really feel coherently connected to the events of the past at this point. At times, it felt like a completely different show. Still, the episode proved that the show could at least still be interesting and likable. I am not a big fan of the romance here, but I appreciated the scheming between Domenico and Gerbert.

We need more of Marcus, Baldwin, and the Knights. We need more of the search for the Drac Ripper and Gerbert trying to use that to his advantage. These things made the show great during the first season but they’ve been lacking throughout this season. The episode was refreshing so it scores a 7.5 out of 10. Previous recaps of A Discovery of Witches can be found on Reel Mockery.